Truth

I was inadvertently given a challenge the other day. It came from this post of a family friend. It was a challenge to look for truth- or to be honest. I really recommend you check out the link to the entry- she says a lot of great stuff.

It made me think about my experience with truth and honesty with others. It made me realize how often I dance around things as to not hurt others, or to avoid conflict. They may be little white lies, but I think they hurt things in the end, because every one builds a mask.

I think back to my relationship with Caleb and remember how honest I was. That relationship had an amazing amount of honesty. I seldom lied- and when I did, it was usually over things that bothered me that I didn't want to make waves about. But it still caused problems. I was afraid of a lack of compatibility, or an inability to "work things out"
And we all see how well that worked. One of us ended up with a mask anyway.

So if he was the person I was most honest with, what does that tell you about my relations with other people? I don't want to hurt feelings, so sometimes I won't tell my friends things they probably need to hear (but then again, who am I to judge?) I should give my honest advice when they ask, even if it's bitter for them to swallow.

So starting tomorrow, as dd suggested, I will be honest (a.k.a. "tell it as I see things") for an entire week and see where it gets me. I think it will be good for me. It may hurt, frustrate or anger people, but...maybe it will be good for me. We'll see how the experiement goes.

I'm not saying I'm going to release every little thing I think and feel (not like the movie "Liar, Liar") but rather, when I am asked something or put in a situation where I would usually fib, I will try to be straightforward and honest.

I'll be sure to let you know how things go.